The word “patriotism” has a manly lineage, descending from the Latin patriota, borrowed in turn from the Greek patris meaning “of one’s fathers.” The Greeks applied patris to barbarians who shared a common patrilineage, reserving the more elevated polis for those who shared a broader loyalty to a common free city-state such as Athens.
A patriot, then, is etymologically a barbarian who is loyal to his father’s lineage. If that’s the case, then to be patriotic is almost by definition to embrace patriarchy – and not just any patriarchy, but the one from which the male line of one’s own family has descended like a testicle.
In U.S. usage, the word “patriot” hearkens to the time of the American Revolution, and to the seminal contributions of its Founding Fathers. A Patriot is also a variety of US surface-to-air missile in the shape of a guess-what.
If there was ever a testosteronic word, that word is “patriot.”
Rarely if ever do we hear mention of patriotism’s ovarian counterpart, “matriotism,” or literally, loyalty to one’s matrilineage. While some cultures are matrilineal (Jewish identity, for instance, is traditionally traced through the mother’s line), most are not. In American culture generally, matriotic allegiances are rarely expressed as such, unless we count loyalty to one’s alma mater.
But I submit that it’s time we give matriotism its due. Most nations are implicitly matriotic already, inasmuch as they refer fondly to their homelands as “motherlands” – the German “fatherland” being the rare exception. Here in the U.S., our Statue of Liberty is a woman, as is the lesser known Statue of Freedom standing atop the U.S. capitol dome. National icons don’t get much more matriotic than that.
Doesn’t it seem more natural to love a motherland than a fatherland? The maternal metaphor evokes stereotypes of warmth, affection and nurturance, while the paternal metaphor traditionally implies stern authority with a hint of martial discipline. Maybe it’s time to consider the virtues of matriotism as a less warlike, more humane and civilized alternative to patriotism.
Better yet, in this age of advancing gender neutrality, shouldn’t we find a word that expresses love of country irrespective of that country’s metaphorical gender and genitalia?
In place of patriotism or matriotism, how about “neutralism”? Wait, the Swiss and their bankers may already have a patent on that one.
How about “civic pride”? Nope. Towns and cities have a lock on that term.
“Nationalism?” Anyone acquainted with the underside of nationalist movements in history, including Nazionalismus in Germany, may want to go underground to escape or resist this one.
In these globalizing times, some are now reclaiming the less provincial and more cosmopolitan term “humanism” to denote a human solidarity that transcends national boundaries.
But does "humanism" now seem too species-centric to capture our growing sense of dependence upon the greater planetary ecosphere in which we earthlings make our nests?
So how about "ecoism"? The word “ecology” means literally “the economy of the household or habitat.” Whether or not we're patriotic or matriotic, maybe we should all think about becoming more “home economic”?
Someday, those who regard the whole planet, and not just this or that imaginary bounded space on its surface, as their homeland may come to know themselves as "Earthists."
Or not.
Your thoughts?
-- originally posted in Danagram
A patriot, then, is etymologically a barbarian who is loyal to his father’s lineage. If that’s the case, then to be patriotic is almost by definition to embrace patriarchy – and not just any patriarchy, but the one from which the male line of one’s own family has descended like a testicle.
In U.S. usage, the word “patriot” hearkens to the time of the American Revolution, and to the seminal contributions of its Founding Fathers. A Patriot is also a variety of US surface-to-air missile in the shape of a guess-what.
If there was ever a testosteronic word, that word is “patriot.”
Rarely if ever do we hear mention of patriotism’s ovarian counterpart, “matriotism,” or literally, loyalty to one’s matrilineage. While some cultures are matrilineal (Jewish identity, for instance, is traditionally traced through the mother’s line), most are not. In American culture generally, matriotic allegiances are rarely expressed as such, unless we count loyalty to one’s alma mater.
But I submit that it’s time we give matriotism its due. Most nations are implicitly matriotic already, inasmuch as they refer fondly to their homelands as “motherlands” – the German “fatherland” being the rare exception. Here in the U.S., our Statue of Liberty is a woman, as is the lesser known Statue of Freedom standing atop the U.S. capitol dome. National icons don’t get much more matriotic than that.
Doesn’t it seem more natural to love a motherland than a fatherland? The maternal metaphor evokes stereotypes of warmth, affection and nurturance, while the paternal metaphor traditionally implies stern authority with a hint of martial discipline. Maybe it’s time to consider the virtues of matriotism as a less warlike, more humane and civilized alternative to patriotism.
Better yet, in this age of advancing gender neutrality, shouldn’t we find a word that expresses love of country irrespective of that country’s metaphorical gender and genitalia?
In place of patriotism or matriotism, how about “neutralism”? Wait, the Swiss and their bankers may already have a patent on that one.
How about “civic pride”? Nope. Towns and cities have a lock on that term.
“Nationalism?” Anyone acquainted with the underside of nationalist movements in history, including Nazionalismus in Germany, may want to go underground to escape or resist this one.
In these globalizing times, some are now reclaiming the less provincial and more cosmopolitan term “humanism” to denote a human solidarity that transcends national boundaries.
But does "humanism" now seem too species-centric to capture our growing sense of dependence upon the greater planetary ecosphere in which we earthlings make our nests?
So how about "ecoism"? The word “ecology” means literally “the economy of the household or habitat.” Whether or not we're patriotic or matriotic, maybe we should all think about becoming more “home economic”?
Someday, those who regard the whole planet, and not just this or that imaginary bounded space on its surface, as their homeland may come to know themselves as "Earthists."
Or not.
Your thoughts?
-- originally posted in Danagram
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